Our Team

The USVP team represents four generations of accomplished venture investors, former CEOs, senior executives and technology company founders. We combine our collective experience with varied backgrounds in operations, finance, technology, and management to help you succeed.

What Our Entrepreneurs Say About Us

"David and Irwin bring their successful business experience to AltoBeam. They contribute tremendously in shaping the product strategy, guiding the management team, bringing in synergistic resources, and improving the corporate governance. The USVP team is sincerely supportive of and caring for the management team. We are very happy that David Liddle is on our Board of Directors and USVP is our investor."

Steve Chaohuang Zeng, CEO, AltoBeam

"USVP invested in us and our vision at an early stage. They helped us build our executive team, and put their vast network at our disposal. They share our passion, bring a fresh strategic perspective based on their real-life and broad experience with startups, and have helped us in fundraising. We sincerely appreciate their contributions to Qnovo."

Nadim Maluf, CEO, Qnovo

"In the hectic world of building a startup and changing a market, time is our most precious commodity. Because of that, I believe the best measure of the value of investors and advisors is the quality of the input, yet I often find people trying to impress us with quantity. In USVP we have found a partner just as committed and comfortable with the concept of quality over quantity. The USVP team has consistently delivered high value interactions."

Ron Elwell, CEO, Swoop

"In the 5 years since USVP first invested, Total Beauty has gone through good times and bad times. It's easy for a VC to treat a company, its founders, and its employees well during the good times. But the true test of character is how they treat you during the not so good times. During those times, USVP demonstrated fairness, understanding, a "roll up our sleeves" mentality, and the long term outlook for which they are known."

Emrah Kovacoglu, Co-Founder & CEO, Total Beauty

"USVP has a great network of experienced individuals and they work with us to achieve company goals. They are entrepreneur friendly and provide a great deal of support to the management team. They are not fair weather investors and will stick with you through both good and challenging times."

Simon Napper, President & CEO, Synfora

"We are very proud to be a part of the USVP portfolio. Jacques and the team are great partners; the network and experience they are contributing on a regular basis has really helped fuel our success to date."

Riccardo Badalone, CEO & Co-Founder, Diablo Technologies

"USVP has been great to work with. They offer a clear value-add in their industry expertise and operational know-how, leveraging both to help us realize our goals."

Ziv Kedem, Founder & CEO, Zerto

"Rick Lewis has delivered for ThreatMetrix. As a board member, Rick has brought to the table insightful practical judgment combined with solid technical expertise. He also has made valuable business introductions that have resulted in significant revenue for the company. Working with Rick has been, and continues to be, a great experience."

Reed Taussig, CEO, ThreatMetrix

"USVP, and specifically Irwin Federman, has shared Mellanox’s vision of building a successful, multi-billion dollar company. Irwin joined our Board of Directors and, utilizing his wealth of industry experience, we’ve experienced vast growth and market leadership. We are indebted to USVP and Irwin for their ongoing support."

Eyal Waldman, Chairman, President & CEO, Mellanox Technologies

"Guidewire would not exist — let alone be the successful public company it is today — without USVP. From the far-sighted decision to invest in our idea far ahead of the curve, followed up by nearly a decade of patient support, USVP has been a steadfast partner through thick and thin. In particular, Steve Krausz has brought a wealth of experience to Guidewire's Board, helping us making the key judgment calls."

Marcus Ryu, CEO, Guidewire

"USVP really impressed us with the extra effort they put into getting to know us, both personally as well as professionally, and we saw that pay dividends during our interactions. The partners have an incredible amount of domain knowledge in our space and are extremely engaged when it comes to helping with the heavy lifting of building our business."

Duncan McCall, CEO & Co-Founder, PlaceIQ

"In venture capital, patience is a virtue. USVP exemplifies the patient approach to venture capital, supporting in the most constructive way its entrepreneurs through the inevitable ups and downs in the development of an early stage company."

Tom Phillips, CEO, m6d

"USVP is a big fund that manages to keep a very down-to-earth reputation – that of being loyal and supportive of their entrepreneurs. I call John Hadl when I’m trying to solve a problem with many facets, because he has an amazing ability to think through complex issues."

Zach James, Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Zefr

"USVP's track record and vast experience in the security space is a valuable asset to security entrepreneurs. I strongly recommend partnering with venture capital firms that understand your business and when it comes to information security USVP is the obvious choice."

Mickey Boodaei, CEO, Trusteer

"USVP runs a business that builds great companies by supporting and developing founders and management. They are an extraordinary firm that I want involved in any venture of which I am a part."

Mikael Berner, CEO, EasilyDo

“USVP was a total partner for Force10 Networks – supporting our capital needs, connecting us with potential customers and partners, and providing sound guidance, most of it from Steve Krausz who was one of our leading board members. They were always there to put in whatever effort was required to support our success. Their long history with both private and public companies gives them broad perspective necessary to see companies through their life cycle. I certainly hope that Steve and USVP can be part of my next venture.”

Henry Wasik, Former President & CEO, Force10 Networks

"I have worked with Steve Krausz in three different successful companies over the past two decades – first as an entrepreneur, then as a CEO, and finally as a co-investor. In all circumstances, good or challenging, Steve provided the team with the highest level of contribution. Armed with high intelligence, vast experience and deeply rooted human decency. Steve has consistently proved himself a good partner for the startup journey."

Shlomo Kramer, CEO, Imperva

"We're very pleased to have USVP as an investor and board member. They have always been very supportive and helpful, and I would describe them as founder-friendly, which to me is one of the most important attributes of a VC."

David Sacks, Founder, Chairman & CEO, Yammer

"USVP has been a great business partner, over the last few years. They not only support us when we truly need it, challenge us when necessary, but also provide a very balanced board-membership focused on what the company actually needs."

Menko DeRoos, Founder & CEO, Xicato

"Rick has been a steady hand on the wheel, since joining the Board of myYearbook. Rick brought a product sense, a command of social and mobile, and a level of rigor to the Board that played a major role in achieving our success. Rick has an abiding respect for the role of the entrepreneur and a rare clarity on the role of the Board member that makes him a pleasure to work with, especially in those moments of strategic uncertainty that most measure the mettle of a company."

Geoff Cook, Founder, myYearbook.com

"As an Entrepreneur, your choice of investors is one of the most important decisions that you make. USVP has been with us since the very beginning, and they are proving to be outstanding partners. We are just getting started and have already benefited greatly from their industry knowledge, their extensive relationships, and their advice and counsel regarding the unique issues we face as an early-stage company. We are all very grateful to have them on the team!"

Mark Goldman, Co-Founder & CEO, ExtendTV

"Phil Young is the most capable investor I've ever had the pleasure to work with. He is disciplined, thorough, knowledgeable and a pleasure to work with. I've learned more about business management from him, while serving as a director with him, than from any other experience. He is the investor every entrepreneur wants."